Dear Homework,
My family and I have lived in our ’20s era Clayton Tudor for decades, and it is beginning to need some exterior maintenance. Could you give us some ‘fresh eyes’ and tell us what you might do to update/freshen the appearance of our home? Sincerely,
-Ready for a New Look
Dear Ready for a New Look,
I really respond to the façade of your home. It always seems to me that architects in the ’20s and ’30s found a wonderful balance that produced beautifully detailed homes that are dignified yet elegant. With your home, I would be surprised if the windows originally featured shutters, and I would like to remove them.
I would also like to change the colors of the house. White painted brick with dark brown trim would have (most likely) been the original scheme for the residence. This change will bring a new crispness to the façade, because of the bold contrast it creates. Next, I would add a striped canvas awning over the French doors to replace some of the detail that removing the shutters subtracted. Beyond this, I think the composition, scale and details of your façade look great.
As far as the landscape goes, there is a lot to work with here. I would remove the overgrown evergreen shrub in front of the French doors but leave everything else in place. I also would add a low, horizontal evergreen hedge on both sides of the house. A new, tall evergreen on the left helps balance and frame the façade. Finally, two new ornamental urns filled with accent flowers help underscore the importance of the front door.
The effect of these changes gives the property a more stylish, ‘pulled together’ feel that would be a nice gift to a home that has served your family so well. Good luck with your changes.
-Homework
[Homework is penned by Paul Doerner, Founding Partner of the Lawrence Group. If you would like your home critiqued, contact us at homework@townandstyle.com .]
